All Aircraft programmes articles – Page 61
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In depthFrom the archive: Boeing 747 flight test
As the new Boeing 747 was making its debut in early 1970, Flight International’s test pilot, Captain R E Gillman, was given the opportunity to try out the behemoth in the air. This is an edited version of that article, originally published on 12 March 1970
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NewsAirbus shows off hydrogen-fuelled concept aircraft for 2035 service entry
Airbus has unveiled conceptual designs for a potential zero-emission commercial aircraft, which it believes could be developed for service entry in the next 15 years. All three of the preliminary designs – branded as ‘ZEROe’ aircraft – would use hydrogen as the main power source. Source: Airbus ...
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NewsATR flies first new-build 72-600 freighter for FedEx
ATR has flown the first example of its newly-developed 72-600 freighter, a purpose-built cargo version of its larger turboprop. The aircraft was launched three years ago with an order for up to 50 from US express freight specialist FedEx. Thirty of the aircraft under the FedEx agreement were firm. ATR ...
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In depthHow widebodies caused a revolution in aviation
Air transport entered a new era half a century ago when airframers created a step-change in size and capacity with the first generation of twin-aisles, of which the Boeing 747 was only the first. 9,683 The number of widebody airliners delivered globally, according to Cirium fleets data 1,638 Total ...
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AnalysisAirbus increases the gap in commercial revenues over Boeing
How did the Top 100 companies rank when it came to sales in the airliner and business aircraft segments? As in the main table, Boeing descended sharply
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In depthHow Soviets decided four was the magic number
Call it an air transport anachronism, but just as four-engined airliners are slipping, perhaps prematurely, into the realms of nostalgia, Russian airframer VASO is assembling a new widebody quadjet, the Ilyushin Il-96-400M, at its facility in Voronezh.
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In depthFive decades of widebody deliveries and development
Since Boeing handed the first 747-100 (N733PA) to Pan Am at its Everett plant near Seattle on 12 December 1969, the world’s manufacturers have delivered almost 9,700 more widebodies to airlines, governments, air forces – and even some wealthy individuals.
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In depthWhy 1970 fundamentally redefined air transport
However you look at it, 1970 was an epoch-making year for commercial aviation. The revolution in aircraft design heralded in that year would be the springboard for the airline industry to accelerate capacity growth in a way it could only dream about previously.
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NewsProposed A380neo would have offered double-digit fuel reduction: Clark
Emirates Airline president Tim Clark laments Airbus’s decision to abandon the “A380neo”, believing that the proposed re-egngining would have created an “absolutely brilliant” aircraft offering a double-digit fuel-burn reduction.
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NewsAirbus delivers 39 aircraft but records just a single order in August
Airbus recorded a single order during August, for one corporate A320neo which was received from a private customer. It took the airframer’s overall net order total this year to 303 aircraft. Total deliveries over the first eight months of the year reached 284, the manufacturer’s latest backlog figures show. This ...
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NewsSupersonic passenger aircraft research in line for Russian federal grant
Creation of a Russian supersonic passenger aircraft research centre has been selected for funding by the federal government. The aim of the scientific centre is to establish a world-class technological knowledge base for conceptual design and aerodynamic analysis of an aircraft with low sonic boom. This work on key technological ...
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NewsAirbus redesigns A350 control panel to resist liquid spillage
Airbus has developed a new liquid-resistant integrated control panel for the A350, designed to avoid the risk to engine systems from accidental drink spillage in the cockpit. Its development follows two incidents, in November last year and January this year, in which A350-900s diverted as a result of uncommanded engine ...
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News‘Flying-V’ model embarks on first test flight — with Airbus support
A scaled model of the ‘Flying-V’ blended wing aircraft concept — first unveiled by Dutch researchers last year — has completed its first test flight in Germany. Airbus also emerged as the latest partner in the project, after Dutch flag carrier KLM threw its weight behind the project last year. ...
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NewsBOC Aviation cancels order for 18 A320neos
BOC Aviation has cancelled an entire order for 18 Airbus A320neo family aircraft, after its airline customer opted to purchase the aircraft directly from the manufacturer, a 30 August filing to the Hong Kong stock exchange shows. The order, first announced on 31 December, was scheduled for delivery between 2022 ...
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NewsBoeing orders eight 787s to be withdrawn from service over structural issue
Boeing has ordered the removal from service of eight recently built 787s which have been identified as suffering from two “distinct manufacturing issues”. The airframer discloses that the two structural issues were found in the join of the aft body fuselage section of the jets, “which, in combination, result ...
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NewsEASA sets date to begin flight-testing 737 Max
European validation testing of the Boeing 737 Max is set to commence in early September, with flights conducted in Canada. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency states that it will begin simulator testing from 1 September at a facility in London Gatwick. Flight-testing of the aircraft under EASA oversight will ...
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NewsCrisis forces Rolls-Royce to rethink ITP Aero retention
Such has been the sweeping impact of the air transport crisis that Rolls-Royce is floating the divestment of its Spanish-based turbine business ITP Aero just three years after its acquisition – having previously insisted the business was not for sale. Rolls-Royce, which had long held 47% of ITP Aero, turned ...
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NewsMC-21 developers refine unusual-attitude protection criteria
Russian analysts have been refining the flight-control system of the Irkut MC-21-300 to establish protection criteria for avoiding unusual attitudes. The twinjet has a limiter subsystem within its integrated control system which is responsible for preventing the aircraft from entering “difficult situations”, says the Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute. It says the ...
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NewsAviastar tests new robotic line to accelerate Il-76 assembly
Russia’s United Aircraft has introduced a new automated production line for Ilyushin Il-76MD-90A heavy transports which is intended to enhance substantially the assembly process. The technological processes are being tested at the Aviastar manufacturing facility in Ulyanovsk. Compared with the previous traditional process, the automated line will reduce by four ...
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OpinionBoeing’s challenge to address the reputational crisis around Max brand
Seattle’s marketing strategy is in the spotlight amid renewed speculation about its commitment to the name. But is a rebrand the right solution?